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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25778881">Present Tense</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/girlsinthestars/pseuds/girlsinthestars'>girlsinthestars</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fix-It, Fluff, Getting Back Together, M/M, Michael struggles to express emotions outside of metaphors, Music as a love language, Post-Season/Series 02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 07:28:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,368</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25778881</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/girlsinthestars/pseuds/girlsinthestars</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After months of redefining their platonic relationship, Michael finally asks to hear the rest of Alex's song.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Michael Guerin/Alex Manes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>132</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Present Tense</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It had been months. Michael hadn’t said anything about the song, he had told Alex he was proud of him, he had accepted the guitar again and even played with Alex a couple times. But he had never mentioned the song. Alex accepted that as his rejection. He had dated Forrest for a couple of months, and it was good, it was fun, Forrest made him feel good about himself. They had mutually agreed to go their separate ways. Michael had made a strange expression when Alex told him, he said he was sorry to hear that, but he didn’t seem like he was. Michael came over more after that, seamlessly dropping himself back into Alex’s life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They played together a lot, it relaxed Michael, sometimes he would turn up in the early hours of the morning, bouncing on the balls of his feet and scratching the back of his healed hand. And Alex would lead him into the lounge room, silently pulling out the guitar and sitting down at his keyboard. It usually only took Michael a couple of songs to calm down enough to sit on the piano stool with Alex, his head resting on Alex’s shoulder, his hands lazily strumming chords to match what Alex was playing. Alex had learnt a long time ago Michael preferred physical comfort over verbal comfort, so he gently pressed back against Michael, letting him know that Alex wasn’t going anywhere. On those nights Michael usually ended up sleeping in Alex’s bed, curled into his chest. They never talked about it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex never played for Michael, they played together, songs they had loved as kids, songs they were both listening to now, but Alex never played any of his music for Michael. Michael never asked. Until he did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a warm Sunday afternoon, Michael had given up on the guitar and laid back on the couch watching Alex play slow melodies that melded together in the hazy air of the sun soaked room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Play me the rest of your song.” Michael requested so quietly Alex might have thought he imagined it. He stopped playing and turned around, finding Michael’s eyes already on him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Which one?” He asked, as if he didn’t know exactly what Michael was talking about.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The one you performed the first time you played at the Wild Pony, I wanna hear the full song.” Michael said casually, as if he wasn’t asking Alex to take a wild leap into the darkness they had been so carefully toeing the edge of for months. But Alex couldn’t think of a reason not to. So he slowly turned back around and began playing with shaky hands.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex jolted slightly when Michael sat down next to him halfway through the first chorus, playing quiet chords, trying to match Alex, by the second chorus he had found a chord progression that complimented Alex’s melody. That was when Alex heard Michael’s voice, deeper than his own, and quieter. Alex wasn’t sure he had ever heard Michael sing, even back when they were kids, but Michael was singing along to the chorus, easily harmonising with Alex like he knew exactly where Alex was going next, despite having only heard the first half of the song before. It felt like a kind of sign, they knew each other so well that they automatically fell into sync with each other, like it was second nature.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are… the best of me.” Alex looked up as he played the final note, finding Michael watching him with a soft smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s beautiful.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really, Michael? That’s all you have to say?” Alex asked incredulously.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael shrugged. “I dunno, I’m thinking it might be better as a duet.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex sucked in a breath, watching Michael’s expression, the cautious smile that was tugging at his lips, the fear that he was letting show in his eyes, he was never very good at hiding how he felt, as nonchalant as he was able to sound. Because of course that’s how Michael wanted to play this. He could never be up front, it was all winding circles and metaphors with him. That was okay though, Alex could work with that, they could move forward with that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’d like that.” Alex said simply, smiling as the fear cleared from Michael’s eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah. As long as it’s you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’d be happy to work on a second harmony.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex knew that was Michael’s way of telling him he was ready to do this, work together to build a relationship that could actually last. He reached a hand out and brushed Michael’s curls out of his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sick of living in the past tense, saying I loved you, I love you, Michael, I never stopped loving you.” Alex said all at once, it felt like exhaling a breath he had been holding for months.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you too.” Michael said softly, “Never shoulda let you think I didn’t.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex let out a sigh, resting his forehead against Michael’s, the dark precipice didn’t feel so scary now that they were safely standing in a valley full of life and opportunity.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘m home, love.” Michael murmured, pressing a kiss to Alex’s brow bone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex smiled, hiding his face in Michael’s shoulder. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why didn’t you stay for the end of the song?” He asked, worried that he might be ruining everything but needing to know the answer all the same.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We weren’t ready.” Michael said, his arm around Alex didn’t falter and he threaded his fingers through Alex’s. “You needed more time, you had only just come out in public, I had only just broken up with Maria. I couldn’t let us dive back in just to crash again, we couldn’t have made it through that again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And now?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now you’re my best friend, the first person I tell news to, the person I come to when I’m happy or sad. I know you, and you know me. Now we know how to be good for each other. Now I can tell you I love you and there aren’t any strings attached, no dark past to it, just the truth.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So that means…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael laughed, kissing Alex’s head. “Isobel is gonna be over the moon, you would not believe how much she’s been pestering me to tell you how I feel since the night at the Wild Pony.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex tilted his head away from Michael’s slightly. “I’m not sure you’ve fully told me how you feel yet.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael stared at him. “You really want me to-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex gave him a look. It had been over a year of Michael avoiding talking about how he felt for Alex. Alex had written Michael a whole ass song, the least he could do was open up a little bit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. I love you Alex, I’ve loved you since we were kids, I loved you the entire decade we were apart, I love you now and I intend to love you until I die.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex leaned into Michael’s shoulder. “Me too.”</span>
</p><hr/>
<p>
  <span>“You know…” Michael murmured, later, when they were curled around each other in bed, Michael’s hands brushing through Alex’s hair, he had grown it out since leaving the military and Michael loved it more than anything. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mmhm?” Alex responded against Michael’s chest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When you were missing, I went a bit crazy and… well I remembered some things I had dreamed about doing with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?” Alex propped himself up over Michael’s chest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I always- I dunno, I thought maybe we’d have some kids, a dad band, I could play the guitar, you’d do vocals and keyboard, we’d have a drummer and a bassist.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael was blushing, feeling embarrassed to be admitting this to Alex so soon after they finally reconciled, but Alex was smiling so fondly he forgot about that immediately.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Two kids then?” Alex asked, smiling when Michael shrugged like he hadn’t just admitted to having been mentally planning this for years.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And a cat.” Michael added quietly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Alex grinned and kissed his nose. “I love that idea.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?” Michael sounded hopeful, like a part of him had expected Alex to reject him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah.” Alex answered easily, head returning to it’s prior spot on Michael’s chest. “Yeah, of course.” </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>They just love each other so much ok.</p>
<p>Find me on Tumblr @girlsinthestars</p></blockquote></div></div>
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